Stephen Faris completed his second year on the Tiger coaching staff in a full-time capacity in 2015, serving as the volunteer assistant. His duties included assisting with the pitching staff and on-campus recruiting. Faris was a starting righthander on three Clemson teams (2004-06) before playing four seasons in the minor leagues.

Faris (pronounced FAYR-ihs) served as a student assistant coach at Clemson in 2013, assisting pitching coach Dan Pepicelli. The pitching staff had a 3.21 ERA, Clemson’s best mark since 1996.

In 2014, the staff was led by Daniel Gossett, who was a First-Team All-ACC selection and one of 21 semifinalists for the Golden Spikes Award. He was 7-2 with a 1.93 ERA, .202 opponents’ batting average and 107 strikeouts. Closer Matt Campbell had a 4-0 record, eight saves, an 0.84 ERA, a .144 opponents’ batting average and 45 strikeouts in 32.0 innings pitched. Matthew Crownover earned All-ACC honors as well.

Crownover was named ACC Pitcher-of-the-Year, the first Tiger to win the award, in 2015. The lefthander was 10-3 with a 1.82 ERA, .183 opponents’ batting average and the most strikeouts (108) by a Tiger since 1996. Faris also coached Zack Erwin, who had 92 strikeouts against only 16 walks in 106.2 innings pitched.

As a Tiger, Faris had a 16-10 record and a 3.24 ERA in 242.0 innings pitched over 55 appearances (33 starts). He had 189 strikeouts against 56 walks, good for a 3.38 strikeout-to-walk ratio, sixth-best in school history. He also had a 2.08 walks-per-nine-innings-pitched mark, third-best in Tiger history.

After pitching limited innings as a freshman in 2004, Faris emerged as a versatile pitcher in 2005 with a 6-4 record, team-best 2.60 ERA and one save while allowing just one home run in 20 appearances (10 starts) to earn Second-Team All-ACC honors. The highlight of his 2005 season came against No. 4 South Carolina when he pitched a complete game five-hitter to earn the win. He received ACC Pitcher-of-the-Week honors.

As a junior in 2006, Faris had a 9-3 record and team-best 2.36 ERA in a team-high 103.0 innings pitched over 18 starts on Clemson’s College World Series team that finished the season ranked No. 5 in the nation. He added 86 strikeouts against only 20 walks, good for a 4.30 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

In four seasons in the minor leagues, Faris had a 23-24 record and 4.24 ERA in 411.2 innings pitched over 99 appearances (69 starts). He reached as high as AAA in 2007 with the Portland (Ore.) Beavers of the Padres organization.

The 31-year-old Faris, a two-time member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll during his time as a player, received his degree in sport management with a minor in business administration from Clemson in 2013. He was born June 30, 1984 in Richmond, Va.